Philadelphia Ballet breaks ground on new N. Broad St. building. This time for real.

Dancers posed on construction equipment, speeches were given, and champagne bottles popped. Thursday afternoon, Philadelphia Ballet broke ground on its new NorthBroad Street headquarters.

But if all this sounds familiar, there’s a good reason: It was Take Two for a groundbreaking by Philadelphia’s largest dance organization. After ceremonies for the proposed building were first held in September 2022, the ballet was unable to come to terms with a bank on financing, and construction never commenced on the lot near Callowhill Street.

Now, though, an $18.5 million bridge loan in the form of a tax-exempt bond has been nailed down and the project is a go, says ballet executive director Shelly Power.

”Frankly, we were delayed because we had to find a finance partner that understood nonprofit capital projects,” Power said, referring to financial services firm Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. “We will continue to fundraise to finish the project while construction is ongoing.”

Although a backhoe was on hand Thursday afternoon, its presence was once again symbolic. The start of construction is likely weeks away. Still, ballet leaders hailed the occasion as progress.

”This is really happening now,” said company artistic director Ángel Corella.

Power anticipates that work on the Philadelphia Ballet Center for Dance will begin this summer. Construction is expected to take about 18 months, which means the new building would be completed about December 2025.

The addition — which, at 43,000 square feet, triples the company’s current space — was originally slated to be opening this spring. What the building will house has not changed: a multipurpose space for rehearsals, community events, free pop-up classes, and seating for up to 150; physical therapy facilities; public spaces; and a doubling of studios to 7½, including a glassed-in dance studio on the top floor.

The design calls for a large video screen on the Broad Street facade to be programmed with changing images. Power has said the building, designed by Philadelphia’s Varenhorst Architects, will allow the company to grow its school and to host more public events. After the new headquarters opens, the ballet will then renovate its current, adjacent low-slung building set back from Broad Street.

The total project cost is expected to be $37.5 million, of which $26.3 million — or 70% — has been raised so far. Power expects the act of actually starting construction to stimulate fundraising.

”This is going to help leverage us. People have said, ‘As soon as you put a shovel in the ground, we’re there.’”

Of the quirk of a first groundbreaking followed by a second, she said: ”That was a rehearsal. This is the real deal.”